As a result, you can't fully focus on both at the same time in the same way you can with walking and gum-chewing, for instance. You could suffer "inattention blindness," where you may see an object but not process that it's a car speeding toward you, Krishnan says.

By adjusting your mirrors so that you barely see the edges of your own car, you can effectively eliminate the blind spots on the sides of the vehicle, she says. The rear-view mirror should be able to locate any car behind yours. It's worth the few seconds it takes to adjust these when you get in the driver's seat.

Heat transfers faster through liquid than gas, so keep warm by staying dry.

To ensure your body temperature doesn't fall too quickly in cold environments, invest in clothes made of wool instead of cotton — they'll absorb more moisture so that dampness doesn't linger on your skin. And, of course, do your best to stay dry.

Don't eat snow for hydration unless you absolutely have to.

Lavoie also says your body uses a great deal of energy to convert matter from one state to another.

That's why he says you should eat snow as a substitute for water only as a last resort. In gaining that small amount of hydration, you'll give up precious body heat.

If your plane makes a water landing, resist the urge to inflate your life jacket immediately.

Alvin Yip warns against the impulse to inflate your life jacket immediately if a plane is making an emergency landing on water. The buoyancy of the jacket could make it harder for you to run inside the cabin if water rushes in, Yip says.

So swim to an exit, then inflate your jacket to stay afloat.

If you're lost, walking downhill raises your chances of finding help.

People often build societies around nearby water sources, and since water flows downhill, you'll increase your chances of finding help if you're able to walk downhill, Ernest Adams says.

Adams uses the example of Juliane Koepcke, a plane crash survivor who floated down a river for nine days in 1971 before finding shelter. Several hours later, she was rescued.

You can perform the Heimlich maneuver on yourself.

Few people realize that they don't need someone else to dislodge a piece of food from their throat.

If you get hurt in a public place, single out one person for help to avoid the bystander effect.

Sharma also explains the well-studied psychological phenomenon that says crowds of people fail to help somebody because everyone thinks someone else will intervene.

If you're not too hurt to call out for help, pick one person and direct your pleas to them. You'll be more likely to get the aid you need.

A bright flashlight could be a good weapon against an attacker.

An extremely bright flashlight could ward off a mugger just as effectively as mace or a weapon, Shah says.

"If you have someone approaching you that seems aggressive, in the gravest extreme, a blast of 300+ lumen to the eyes (especially at night) will give you the opportunity to get out," he quotes in his answer. "And suppose you misread the situation — no one is really harmed, and you can't get in trouble for it."

If you get lost on a hike, try to find a fence or stream.

"The stream always flows downhill and invariably will reach a larger tributary or a body of water," says Jon Mixon. And "the fence will almost always lead to a road or a structure."

Use condoms as makeshift water storage.

Condoms are incredibly elastic. As Janis Butevics says, you can use that to your advantage if you need a quick way to store a large volume of water. They essentially act like bladders and are capable of holding a gallon of water," Butevics says.

"They can also be used to protect against water, as a stretchable cover for valuable items like matches and walkie-talkies," Butevics wrote.

Picking out exits ahead of time will cut through your "normalcy bias."

When warnings are sent about natural disasters, many people stay put even when told to evacuate. As John Ewing says, psychologists call the phenomenon the "normalcy bias." It refers to people's tendency to think everything will turn out OK even when they're clearly in danger.

Ewing says people can counteract the normalcy bias by locating multiple exits when they're in public places, such as at the movies or out to eat. Mentally preparing yourself to act if a dangerous situation arises will train you to be vigilant, Ewing says.

Author:
pulse
Source:
BusinessInsider

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